One of the ingredients that show up on our land during the rainy season is the bamboo shoot! They simply just pop out of the ground around where the bamboo bushes are. Given the right weather, dampness, air flow, they are all over the place throughout the wet season. However, when the rain stops, the unpicked bamboo shoots will grow into bamboo trees and start to shed leaves.

But our grandma, barely let it happen because the bamboo shoot is one of her favorite dishes. So, to satisfy her cravings during the summer season, she would chop the bamboo shoots into smaller pieces and ferment them with salt for weeks or months. The fresh crunchy bamboo shoot would turn sour and salty. It is simply delish!

See below how grandma made it and if you can find fresh bamboo shoot where you live, you can try grandma’s recipe yourself!

Ingredients:
1) 4 fresh bamboo shoots
2) 4 tbsp of salt

Instructions
1) Remove the hard outer parts of the fresh bamboo shoot until you find the soft meat inside.
2) Chop up the bamboo shoot into smaller pieces
3) Marinate it with sea salt thoroughly
4) Stuff the bamboo shoot into a plastic water bottle
5) Fill the bottle with water so there is no air bubble left in the bottle.
6) Let the bamboo shoot ferment for a week or two or until it turns sour.
7) Remove the bamboo shoot from the bottle and clean it in water.

Now you know our secrets for the delicious wild harvested dish of the rainy seaon… It’s a matter of finding the bamboo shoot around your area and just make it happen!

See you next time. 🙂